Duke Aiona:
Better schools help Native Hawaiians stay out of prison

Q: A recent OHA report says that Native Hawaiians are treated despairingly by the Justice System. If elected you'll be only the second governor of Native Hawaiian ancestry. What steps would you want to take to help Hawaiians?

A: I'll always come back
to education. I'm a firm believer in education. Education is the key to having a future. So get educated.

Q: Do you think that would help address the overrepresentation of Hawaiians in prisons?

A: I haven't had a chance to read this report.
But, I do know that based on my experiences, you can say it's anecdotal, but I was the judge that was sentencing people to prison. I was the family court judge who was also having disposition on our juvenile delinquents. I can give anecdotal stuff
and I will tell you, that yes, if we have a quality educational system and as well as strong families--because strong families are always the key to this--I think we can make some headway into these problems that we're facing right now.